Ice Cold
by Ann Fan
Summary: After a devistating past Nami's heart turned hard. She became isolated from the world, and wasn't close to anyone. Then she came to Forget-Me-Not Valley where she met a novice farmer, Lane. Does he have what it takes to thaw Nami's ice cold heart?
1. Nami's Past

Hello! Once again it's me, Ann Fan. I hope you like reading my AWL fanfic. Please R&R. Thank you!  
  
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Ice Cold  
Chapter One-Nami's Past  
People say that the past is a dangerous weapon. In Nami's case it was more of a bluff, a bluff to scare people out of getting close to her. Her past meant everything to her, yet it meant nothing. It was something she could not destroy yet she was still afraid of losing it. She picked up a pen and brought it to paper. She wanted to make sure that it, unlike many things in her life, would not disappear in front of her. With all of this in mind she wrote and wrote. When it was finally finished it added up to this:  
  
It all started in a place far away from here, my home. When I was about four my mother had a baby boy, my brother, whom she named Joel. But just a few months after Joel was born my mother ran off with another man, and left my father all alone with Joel and me. Dad stayed at home with us for as long as he could, but he soon had to get a job just to put food on the table. He worked long, grueling hours, which meant Joel and me were left alone a lot. By that time I was six so I could take care of Joel and myself. I'd have to drag him along while I went herb searching. We mostly lived off herbs then.  
We got along for about three years, and then Dad lost his job because of a broken leg. He couldn't even pay for a doctor bill so he had to give us up, and we were put in foster homes for awhile.  
Six years later Dad showed up again and took us back, but it was different because he was going out with a woman. Don't get me wrong, she was nice and I wish I would have treated her better, but she wasn't _my_ mother so I chose to resist liking her. Joel, on the other hand, adored her since he never knew his mother. Also, he seemed to hold a grudge against our mother for leaving us. Anyway, Sara, Dad's girlfriend, was the mother he never had.  
Pretty soon Sara and Dad were married, which made me angrier than ever. Dad and me fought all the time. Mostly about my mother and how he didn't want me to be like her. One BIG argument sent me running. Somehow he ended up calling her a slut and that did it. It was then that a miserable fifteen-year-old set out on her own.  
I traveled a lot of places but none of them ever seemed to stick. I guess I thought I might find my mother somewhere, but now that sounds crazy. I knew in my heart she never wanted me, but I just refused to believe it. Once again I went to living on herbs.  
But in this one place, Sundrop Valley, something caused me to stay. It was none other than the opposite sex.  
  
His name was Joe. He was a young, energetic apprentice for the local doctor, and had more enthusiasm than anyone I'd known.  
We met in an unusual situation. I had been staying in Sundrop Valley for about a week, and as usual I was living off herbs, but pretty soon most of the herbs began to die because of a drought. I was so hungry that I ate a poisonous mushroom, which landed me in the local hospital.  
I woke up in a strange place that smelled like medicine (who can guess...a clinic! Naw!) . I heard two voices quickly conversing, one young and one older. I rubbed my eyes and realized I was in a clinic. A young man walked up to me and smiled.  
"You're gonna be just fine. What is your name, my friend?" he jauntily remarked.  
"What is going on?" I impatiently demanded.  
"You ate a poisonous mushroom and passed out. It's a good thing I found you out there. Now, name please? I need it for the patient form."  
"Nami."  
"Nami, well, I've heard worse." He began to laugh at his joke, but I wasn't in the mood.  
"What do you care?"  
"Well, you're my first patient, I want to remember you."  
"You're a first."  
"Oh?"  
"Never mind. Can't a girl get some sleep around here?"  
"Whatever you say." And with that he turned out the light and closed the door to my room. Right then I wished I wouldn't have said anything. I was (sigh) alone, once again.  
The next day, Joe came to give me a wake up call. As I got out of bed Joe's mouth dropped when he saw how thin I was. He wasted no time stating his concern.  
"Wow! How'd you get so thin?" he expressed vividly.  
"None of your business!" I rudely replied. He remained unshaken.  
"Looks like you're in need of a proper meal. I'd be honored to offer you one." I wanted more than anything to refuse him, but the thought of a nice, hot bowl of soup or a well-seasoned bowl of salad eluded me.  
"I guess that would be alright." Upon his lips played a smile that made me melt. He took me to a local restaurant that night, and the meal was just DELICIOUS! I couldn't even remember the last time I'd had a meal so good. It was a thousand times tastier than my usual diet of herbs. But despite its great taste, it reminded me of what I could not have. For soon I'd have to go back to eating herbs once again.  
But my prediction turned out wrong because at least once every week, Joe made sure that I got a proper meal. It was the first time in a long time that anyone had bothered to show kindness to me, and to tell the truth I liked it. It was nice to actually have someone care about you and your well being. Every other night Joe and I would go down to the Sundrop Beach. During one such night, I revealed my past to my good friend.  
"You must have a family somewhere that misses you," Joe randomly expressed. I laughed out loud. My family...miss _me_? Well Joel might, but I continued to erupt with laughter. Joe looked bewildered and utterly confused. I decided that I should explain and explain I did. I spilled the whole story out to Joe, every little detail. For some odd reason I was not afraid to tell him. "You must miss them." That remark got him a blank stare. "Oh come on Nami, I know somewhere deep inside that stubborn heart of yours that you miss them." Then it hit me. Joe knew me. He knew me like the back of his hand. He knew me so well that it scared me, but I didn't care. We were friends, and friends know each other...right?  
Joe continued to amaze me by how much he knew me, but as time passed I got used to it. There was just something about us that clicked. We were inseparable.  
"Well Nami," Joe began at another one of our beach nights, "I certainly know a lot about you, but I'm not so sure if you know a lot about me." I gave him a playful smirk.  
"Oh, you wouldn't be offering your reputation to me, would you?" I playfully hinted.  
"Oh...no," he played along not to my surprise. "I'm just wondering if you might be painfully curious. I mean, you've been so generous about your past and you haven't even asked me about mine." I returned him a smile and nodded. "Well...a long, long time ago this little guy named Joe came along. Now keep in mind that this was a long, long time ago so things were a bit different back then." I burst into uncontrollable laughter, but despite my outburst he continued. "Now Joe was a little odd. Not many people understood him, which is probably why he later went to college to be a doctor. He went to college about two years then had to take an extra one because he was too odd to understand. Then he came to a place called Sundrop Valley. There he met a very rude and mysterious girl named Nami. Now Nami-" He went no further for I brought my lips to his for an intimate kiss. His hazel eyes got big and round, but he did not push me away. Instead he let me kiss him once more. When our lips parted for the second time, I could see that those hazel eyes of his were almost as big and round as saucers. I laughed in spite of his surprised expression. His eyes were finally restored to their normal condition and he joined in my laughter. I will never forget that night.  
Over the next few weeks we became closer than ever. We saw each other everyday. Then one day Joe surprised me with something very unexpected.  
"Nami," he began, "I've been thinking and..." Then he pulled a blue feather out of his pocket. "I-I'd really like you to be my wife." My mouth hit the floor. He wanted _me_ to be his wife? This was so unreal.  
"Joe!" I exclaimed. "Where'd you get that blue feather? T-They're so rare!" His expression turned blank, and it suddenly hit me that he wanted an answer...right now. "Oh Joe, of course!" He lifted me up in a big embrace. We were both screaming.  
After all the major excitement was over Joe made it clear that we were both responsible for making our own parents, or in my case parent, aware of what was going on. I dreaded facing my father. What would he think? Was he still mad? Joe assured me that everything would work out fine, but unlike me, Joe knew nothing of my father's trials. Since I was pretty much broke Joe bought me a ticket back home so I could tell my father. But I continued to protest. So finally Joe agreed to come with me to see my parents. Although I still wasn't quite sure what to think, I was sure enough to agree. As long as Joe was with me, I thought, nothing could go wrong. Boy was I wrong about that. In fact Joe's presence made the situation worse.  
Finally Joe and I stepped off of the train and onto my old stomping grounds. You'd think I'd be happy to be back home again, but I was the exact opposite. With much effort I finally forced myself through the door to my old home. I told Joe to stay outside until I told him to come in. I was greeted by a now thirteen-year-old Joel. He didn't know who I was at first, but he recognized me when I took off my hat revealing my striking red hair. We shared a warm embrace before I had to face my father's wrath.  
"Joel, who's at the door?" father asked walking into the room. When he caught sight of his gangly, redheaded daughter he was speechless...at first. Little did I know he had a lot more to say.  
"Father," I began getting straight to the point, "I'm getting married." I nervously waited for a reply. I wanted to run. I wanted to hide. Why did I have to come back? It was all Joe's fault. No, I couldn't blame it on Joe. It was all my fault for not dealing with father sooner.  
"You're-" he stalled, but regained his voice quickly, "You're what?!" His voice made me jump. I felt as if we were in one of those various fights we had after he got married. "You're only seventeen and you're getting m-married?!" He began to lose his focus. Then at exactly the wrong moment, Joe made his entrance.  
"What's going on?" he questioned innocently.  
"Is this him?!" my father yelled in rage. "Is this your fiancée?" Oh no! Why did you have to come in just then, Joe? I don't think the next moment could've gone any worse. "Get out you scum! Get away from my daughter!" Joe was too stunned to move. Instead it was me that left. Just before I left I screamed in my father's face, "I hate you Dad!" Hot tears painfully scalded my face as I ran. I had to get away from that town. I had to get away from the memories. I had to get away from my dad. Dad, he wasn't even worthy of that name anymore, not by a long shot. Scum! Homewrecker! That's what he was worthy of!  
After that I became a constant wanderer, worse than before. I never stayed in one place too long. I watched people to no end, but I never talked to them, never. I was too afraid of getting close to them. I was constantly paranoid that something would happen. So I never took the time to get to know anyone. My heart had become inaccessible. My heart had become ice cold.  
  
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Ha! I'm finished with the first chapter! Lot's of drama, huh? Heheheh, I'm a dramatic author. Well anyway I know it's kind of choppy, but I'll try my best to make the future chapters better. Hope you enjoyed it. Please R&R. 


	2. Everybody Loves Lane

Hello! I'm sorry it took me so long to update, but I'm having a slight case of writer's block. I'd like to give a special thanks to Krazie4Christ, princess-elli100,fruitpeach, and Erika-san for your reviews. Thanks a million! Okay! I have some information that will be extremely helpful to you readers. **Nami's own personal thoughts will be _italicized_**. Thank you and enjoy!  
  
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Chapter Two-Everybody Loves Lane  
Nami took yet another step towards yet another new village. _This place won't be any different. I'll be out of here within two weeks._ She'd just come from Mineral Town and was now treading down the path that led to...Forget-Me-Not Valley. _Hmph, Forget-Me-Not Valley? Who could be so desperate as to name this old trash dump that?_ Then the thought entered her mind that forget-me-nots were a type of flower. Instantly her curiosity was sparked, and she began to search for a flower. _What a gyp! Not a single forget-me-not in sight._  
She continued wearily down the path, and was quite relieved to find a large building with a sign that said, "Inner Inn." Her weary feet ached with intense pain. She was about to knock when a man with jet-black hair met her at the door.  
"Hi...I'm Tim, the innkeeper. And who might you be? A customer?" he questioned quizzically.  
"Yes...I suppose so," Nami blandly replied forcing herself through the door.  
"Well, the only room available is upstairs on the right. I'd be happy to-" Nami wasted no time and made her way upstairs after she impatiently shoved a wad of money in Tim's hand. The door was quickly thrust open revealing a well-kept room. She dropped her well-worn bag, which contained everything she owned, in the corner and took a moment to get acquainted with her current home. _Don't get too used to it. You won't stay long._ She then dropped herself on the bed and "accidentally" dozed off.  
  
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'You won't stay long,' Nami repeated to herself a year later. She gave herself an innocent look in the mirror. _No matter how innocent you look, you can never dispose of the guilt of staying in this trash dump for an entire year!_ She vigorously spat in the trash can utterly disgusted with herself. _Might as well walk around. There's nothing else to do._  
She vigorously swung the door of the Inner Inn open and stomped out. She was in an incredibly atrocious mood, and whoever dared approach her was taking his or her life in their own hands. Her heavy treading made deep marks in the dirt. She ignored this and stomped over to the Blue Bar.  
"Hi Nami!" Muffy cheerily greeted. "Have you met the new farmer, Lane? He's one-hundred percent available!" _That's Muffy for you, always keeping her eye on **any** eligible bachelor in sight like a hawk._  
"I couldn't possibly care less," Nami rudely replied. Muffy ignored her and continued to go on and on about "Lane." _What kind of a name is Lane anyway?_ Since Muffy was obviously deeply enthralled within her own vibrant world, Nami slyly sneaked out of the Blue Bar without paying for her drink. _Look where Lane got you now, Muffy_. This thought made Nami laugh in spite of herself.  
But over the next few days Nami's rapidly increasing curiosity about the raved "Lane" finally reached it'd peak. _I must meet him...even if he is just a novice farmer. It can't hurt. Besides it's not like it's actually going to amount to anything._ So Nami carefully attempted to plan out an "accidental" meeting._ I could go to his farm with Muffy...but then Muffy would think I have an interest in him, which I do not!_ She continued to come up with incompatible idea after incompatible idea, and nothing compatible came up. Beaten and broken Nami dismally slumped into a hopeless heap of nothingness next to the "goddess" spring in the "fabled" forest. She hadn't given up but ten minutes ago when who should appear but...Lane. It took him no time to realize that Nami wasn't in the best condition, and he wasted no time stating his concern.  
"Uh Miss?" he shakily responded. "A-Are you okay?" Nami removed her hand from her face and was surprised to find herself face-to-face with a handsome, brown-eyed, young man. _Who in heaven's name is this?_ "My name's Lane." That remark sent Nami perking up to her usual, stubborn self. Relieved that she had "found" him, she took to showing her rudeness at once.  
"I'm fine!" she shouted triumphantly yet convincingly angry. "What do you want?"  
"Nothing..." he replied surprised from Nami's sudden change of character. He jammed his hands into his pockets.  
"So what brings you to this trash dump?" At first Lane gave her a bewildered expression, but soon after followed an answer.

"Well, my dad's dream was for me to work on the farm with his friend, or something like that. How about you?"

"None of your business!" she shouted triumphantly yet convincingly angry. Lane shrugged bewildered and walked off. _Yes! Score! I really hit him hard then!_ But although she felt a nice sensation of triumph, she also felt a slight sensation of disappointment because Lane was not as exciting as people cracked him up to be. Even so she walked away with a deceiving smirk on her face.  
  
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Lane stared dismally at his hopeless tomatoes, but he suddenly perked up. She hasn't seen the last of me, he thought slyly. Suddenly Lane's happy- go-lucky dog, Ace began to alarm him of someone's approach. As soon as Lane saw that it was Nami, his confidence instantly vanished and he sank his head in his hands. Nami was very unprepared for that and, despite her efforts to discourage Lane, knew she should apologize, but she made sure to include some cockiness in her apology.  
"Aw gee, I didn't think you'd take it that hard," she "apologized" in a somewhat raunchy manner.  
"Oh please, you must have something better to do than sympathize _me_," he defended himself. _You're a bag of tricks, aren't you?_  
"Well excuse me!" She hoped that this would trigger him to get mad, but instead he walked away. _Are my techniques that rusty?_ She reluctantly followed him.  
"It's not you, so don't go jumping for joy... My farm's in the gutter and I hate this valley." _Could've fooled me._  
"...Look, you might hate this town...but this town doesn't hate you." And with said and done that Nami made her exit, but just before she left she could see that she'd left him with a smile._ I never meant to encourage him, but oh well._  
  
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Yip! I'm finished. Sorry that it's so short. Anyway thanks so much for reading. Please review!


	3. Scare

Hello! I'm sorry that I'm such an erratic author. Please forgive me. Well, I'll let you read chapter three now.

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Chapter Three-Scare

Nami sat idly on her neatly made bed in her small room. Staring at the "trash dump" before her, Gustafa's melodious tunes caught a hold of her senses. _He must be pretty desperate to have to play music for a living. _

"Lunch!" Tim's voice interrupted. Instantly Nami hopped from her bed, thrust open the door, and darted down the stairs. _There is nothing like one of Ruby's meals!_

"Good morning, Nami," Tim and Ruby chimed simultaneously when Nami entered the kitchen.

"Whatever," she tried to discourage their happiness, but that wouldn't work on Tim on Ruby. They'd been housing Nami for over a year and knew almost every little nuance of her sardonic and flippant personality. Ruby just set down a delicious plate of one of her special dishes undaunted by Nami's barrier. And if anyone there would've payed very close attention,they might have perceived a brief semblance of a smile on Nami's face.

"Decided to sleep in late today?" Tim began the conversation. Nami inanimately nodded. _I guess it is 10:00 in the morning._ Suddenly, a vigorous thud shook the inn and perked everyone's attention.

"Oh no," Ruby sighed heavily. "It's Van again." Nami tried her best to keep from bursting out in laughter. She knew how much of a nuisance the portly salesman was to her "proprieters." Everytime that familiar pounding came from upstairs, Ruby slipped out malign (at least in Ruby's opinion they were mailign) words from under her breath. Tim on the other hand, took the passive approach. He almost broke out in a cold sweat whenever Van entered the premises. Nami, of course, always saw to it that she was far away whenever Van came to stay at the inn. So with much reluctance, Tim exited the kitchen to "greet" Van. Ruby, who was too busy sulking over her misfortune, didn'y even notice when Nami rapidly disappeared from the inn. _Ahh, fresh air._

Once again, a rivulet of Gustafa's inticate music meandered to Nami's observative ears. It had a lighthearted skip in it, but Nami tried not to notice. However, the distraction began to get the better of her. That was a funny thing about her personality. Although she constantly tried to ignore all the distractions that might lead her off the distinct path of "shut everyone out," nine times out of ten, her curiosity got the better of her. So within her nature, it wasn't long before she found herself planted directly in front of the "lunatic minstrel," as she called him. She stared in amazement as his lithe fingers fiddled up and down his treasured guitar. He was so assimilated into what he was playing that he didn't even notice she was there until he'd played the last note.

"Hello," he bid her with surprise written all over his face.

"Hi," she forced under her breath, eyes averting him.

"My, that's a fun one to play."

"Is that all you have to do all day, play music? If so, you really need to get a life." Suprisingly, instead of retorting in disgust, he calmly offered an explanation in true "Gustafa" fashion.

"Actually, music allows me to become one with nature and express myself. It bridges theprodigous gap between reality and imagination, creating not only a wonderous sensation, but a spectacular experience as well." Had not Nami been quite so "urked," she would have allowed her jaw to hit the ground. _Gosh, this one's a toughy._ Nami was utterly defeated…for the moment. _You just wait. I'll come up with something_ she inwardly plotted as she walked away.

Next, Wally and young Hugh came into view doing their daily exercises. _Anyone who's desparate enough to run all day has problems too._ She wasted no time in passing the two fitness fanatics to take a walk up to Romana's mansion. Immediately, more music met her ears, but this time it was the young Lumina's lucid piano that produced it. The music seemed to ease Nami a bit, and it got louder the nearer she inched towards the mansion. When she reached the cast-iron gate, she stopped and checked herself. At that very moment, a familiar face gently opened the door and stepped out, Lane.

Nami was secretly relieved that he looked to be in good spirits, but quickly reprimanded herself for caring at all. Nevertheless, her latent girlish nature began to leak out. _My, how handsome he looks. With his chestnut locks rumpled in stubborn clumps upon his head and those deep brown eyes scanning his surroundings_--_wait! Scanning his surroundings? Oh no!_ But it was too late, for the gawky farmer had already noticed her leaning against the gate, staring straight at him. His eyebrow raised in confusion, and Nami just wanted to crawl away and hide in a corner. _Oh no! He's coming in for the kill! H-he's coming right this way!_

"Hello," he congenially greeted her as if nothing had ever happened between them. Next, Nami made a **major** mistake from her own book of rules, she paniced.

"H-hi," she hesitated uneasily.

"I guess I never really got your name."

"N-Nami."

"Oh…well in any case, nice to meet you." He then _really _tested the new acquaintance and offered his hand. For some odd, _odd _reason, she accepted his offer and shook it. _Oh, you big dummy!_ "Well, I have to go."

"Fine," she attempted a hiss, but it didn't quite have the proper humiliating ring to it. _I'm ruined!_ This time, Lane simply rolled the comment off his back with no problem at all. Cheeks firing, head spinning,Nami nearly sprinted to Blue Bar.

"Muffy!" she shouted after bursting into the bar like fool. "Muffy, pour me something strong, _really_ strong!"

"What's wrong? Did you about have a heart attack when you saw Lane?" Muffy teased.

"Very funny, now hand it over!"

"You could say 'please.'"

"Please!" Luckily, Muffy stopped with the chatter and poured Nami…something. Without any hesitation, she poured the strong liquid down her throat and harshly slammed the glass down on the counter.

"That ought to wake you up… or put you out." Nami began to feel weak, as if her strength was rapidly leaving her. Her body seemed to be shutting down, and then darkness conquered her.

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Nami woke to the worst headache she'd ever experienced in her life. It took a moment for her brain to register what had happened. _Ohhh…that's right. Muffy…and the drink._ When she stirred, her whole body ached intensely. _Oh, I shouldn't have. _The fact of the matter was that Nami had never had an alcoholic beverage before, with the exception of an occasional Moon Trip, and those had hardly even a drop of real alcohol in them. _Just face it, Nami. Drinking is not something you got from your mother. Ohhh, don't ever do that again._ Suddenly, Nami's mood took an abrupt shift from confusion to fear.

_What happened back there with Lane? Where you exposing yourself to someone. No! You can't do this to yourself again Nami. You know the game. When you get close to someone, you get hurt…or you hurt them. _To no surprise to her, hot tears were painfully scalding her cheeks. She knew that deep down, the enduring emotional scar of Joe still hurt her, a scared little girl, deeply. In fact, it was still holding her back. Should she shut herself away from everyone, or should she open herself up? She didn't want to be hurt again, ever again, but if she never had anyone, life would be so unbearably lonely. Body and soul, equally hurting, Nami covered her face and quietly wept.

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Hi readers! I kind of wanted to mix humor and drama together, but don't be afraid to tell me if it's too much. To tell you the truth, I have no idea what I'm doing. ; P


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